The effects of the Imbued Elixir were still dancing in the back of Zoe's mind, leaving her feeling lighter than air. She had brewed it earlier, trying to test the boundaries of its capabilities. She'd already noticed that her perception had sharpened, but she had no idea how deep the system's power really went.
Zoe wasn't sure how long she'd been standing at the counter. The sounds of the groaning outside had blurred into a dull hum, but there was something oddly captivating about the quiet. Everything felt like it was in slow motion. The cluttered space around her, the mismatched furniture, and the cracked tiles of the floor seemed so ordinary yet so far removed from the chaos she knew was beyond the coffee shop's walls.
She blinked, the thought of that chaos pulling her from her strange, almost dreamlike state. Maybe it was the elixir's power still working its magic, or perhaps it was just her mind spiraling out of control. But Zoe couldn't ignore the gnawing feeling in the pit of her stomach—the sense that something far worse than zombies was lurking outside. She felt like she was missing something important.
"Zoe?"
Pearson's voice startled her out of her thoughts. Zoe turned to see him standing near the back of the shop, his brow furrowed with concern. The dim light from the overhead bulbs cast shadows across his face, making him look like he hadn't slept in days—which, knowing the current situation, was entirely possible.
"Are you alright?" Pearson asked, his voice a little hesitant, almost as though he were afraid of her answer.
Zoe swallowed hard. "Yeah, just… a little dizzy, I guess."
It was a half-truth that tasted wrong in her mouth, but she didn't have the strength to explain. She still didn't fully understand what was happening to her, let alone the system guiding her. A part of her wanted to tell Pearson the truth—that there was more than just the zombie apocalypse. But she couldn't bring herself to do it. The system's powers were too dangerous and unpredictable to explain; the last thing she wanted was to draw attention to it.
Pearson didn't seem convinced but nodded slowly. "If you need anything, just let me know."
Zoe watched him turn and return to the others, her thoughts lingering on the strange power she had unlocked with the elixir. The more she thought about it, the more it intrigued her. There had to be a deeper purpose behind it. It could help them find a way out of this hellhole or add to the confusion.
She stepped back from the counter, her fingers brushing lightly against the edge of the espresso machine, the sensation grounding her in the moment. Her gaze drifted to the window, the boards nailed over it offering only a thin sliver of light from the outside. The darkness beyond the barricades felt oppressive, like an abyss that swallowed everything familiar and safe.
Without thinking, Zoe reached for the mug she had brewed earlier—the last remnants of the Imbued Elixir. Peppermint and ginger still lingered in the air, a subtle reminder of what had happened earlier.
She hesitated. There was a deep pull inside her to try it again. To see if she could tap into something more.
Zoe closed her eyes for a moment, trying to steady herself. The last time she had used the elixir, it had sharpened her senses—and made her feel like she was floating outside her body, experiencing everything through a new lens. But what if it could do more than that? What if it could help her understand what was happening in the world beyond the walls?
With a final breath, she took a small sip of the drink.
Almost immediately, the sensation returned. This time, it wasn't just a sharpening of her senses—it was something deeper, something far more profound. Zoe's body seemed to lighten as though it was shedding its physical form. The world around her blurred and snapped into vivid focus, sharper and more accurate than anything she had ever experienced.
Her heartbeat slowed, but her mind raced. She felt herself rising, leaving her body behind, and the shop—the cluttered counters, the flickering lights, the faces of the survivors—faded.
She was no longer in the coffee shop. Instead, she was floating. There were no boundaries, no limits. It was as if she could see everything at once, feel everything, and yet she was separate from it. There was a strange sense of freedom, of release. The world was a vast, swirling tapestry, and Zoe was a thread that could weave in and out of it.
Is this… my soul?
It was the only way she could describe it. A complete out-of-body experience. She could still feel the remnants of her own body, but it was distant, unimportant. She had become something else entirely.
And then, almost instinctively, Zoe turned her attention to the world outside.
The coffee shop was a small haven surrounded by chaos. She could see the streets through the cracks in the barricades—crowded with zombies, their stumbling forms filling every inch of the road. The sight was worse than she had imagined. The streets were teeming with the undead. Every building was either abandoned or collapsed as if the world had crumbled under the weight of the infection.
The air was thick with fog, and the sky overhead was an unnatural shade of grey, casting everything in an eerie, dead light. The zombies moved in packs, a mindless tide of rotting flesh and hunger.
Zoe's stomach twisted in horror.
But there was something else—something more terrifying. Her gaze wandered further down the street, and it stopped at one particular zombie. This one was different from the others. Instead of being dull and grey like the rest, its veins were glowing—pulsing with an eerie light. The veins beneath its skin seemed strange, almost unnatural luminescence as if they were alive with some foreign energy.
Zoe's heart skipped a beat. She wanted to move closer, to get a better look, but the sensation of floating kept her suspended. She couldn't do anything but watch as the glowing veins flickered beneath the zombie's skin. It felt… wrong. Far worse than any of the others.
What is that?
The zombie turned its head, its eyes locking onto hers with a haunting, vacant stare. Zoe felt a shiver run down her incorporeal spine. There was a dark intelligence in those eyes—something different, something alive.
And then, just as quickly as the vision had come, it shattered.
Zoe was jerked back into her body with a violent force that made her gasp. She opened her eyes to find herself back behind the counter, her hands gripping the edge of the espresso machine. Her breath came in quick, shallow gasps, and her vision swam as if she had just woken from a nightmare.
"Zoe?!" Pearson's voice was urgent, and Zoe blinked rapidly, trying to focus.
She felt disoriented—her body heavy and foreign. The room was spinning slightly, and she couldn't catch her breath. Her muscles felt like they were made of lead, and her head pounded.
"What happened?" Pearson asked, leaning over her. His face was filled with concern.
Zoe tried to clear her throat, pushing herself upright. "I'm fine," she muttered quickly, forcing a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. She didn't want them to know what had just happened. She didn't want to explain the out-of-body experience—or the glowing zombie she had seen. The last thing she wanted was for them to think she was losing her grip on reality.
"Just a little… dizziness," she said, her voice shaky. "I… I have a medical condition. I ran out of my medication earlier."
Pearson raised an eyebrow, clearly skeptical but not pressing further. "You should have told us. We need to keep an eye on you."
"I will. I just—" Zoe stopped herself. She couldn't tell him. Not yet. Not about the Brewmaster's System. Not about what she had seen.
Pearson nodded, his expression softening. "Alright, just… don't push yourself too hard, okay?"
Zoe nodded, but inside, she was trembling. The glowing veins, the zombies… Everything felt like it was slipping beyond her control. She had seen something far worse than just the horror they were living through.
She needed answers to understand what was happening, but she wasn't sure if she was ready to face what that meant.
The world outside was darker and more dangerous than she had ever realized, and it was only getting worse.